Baseball tourney returns

To the Editor:

For the past 20 years, a dedicated group of your neighbors has been orchestrating what is considered by many to be the top international amateur youth baseball event in the country right here in your own backyards. The McHenry County Youth Sports Association and the Summer International Championships will return to McHenry County on July 26.

More than 120 youth baseball teams from eight countries and across the U.S. will come to our communities and spend about $2 million in our hotels, restaurants and retail stores during a 10-day period, helping to boost our local economy and giving our local athletes the opportunity to compete against some of the best players in the world.

We need your help. Please consider volunteering or even hosting two of our international players. Businesses that benefit immensely from the event, please support us as a sponsor. For two decades, MCYSA has been driving revenue into your businesses. Support us so that this event can continue for the next 20 years.

In 2013, SIC is a free event for the community. There are no admission fees. Come out, watch a game, and buy a program, T-shirt and hot dog. Enjoy some of the best baseball that you will ever see on the amateur level. Japan, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, Mexico, Canada, the Dominican Republic and the United States. Fifteen-, 13- and 11-year-olds playing for the love of the game. Visit www.MCYSASports.org to learn more about this diamond in the our community.